Tag Archives: knitting

It’s the first rule of book reviewing that when you are suffocating under a pile of books for review and finding less and less time to get to the review pile, the first thing you should do is go to the library and get more books.

It just makes sense really.

So, given that I am woefully behind in my review schedule and have no less than seven books to read and review by the end of next week, I decided it was only fitting to pop to the library and grab two more to bring to your attention. I’m glad I did actually, despite the stirrings of guilt, because I thoroughly enjoyed both of my choices.

First I picked Leave Me Alone by Vera Brosgol, which I had had my eye on since it was first released and I found it featured an old lady protagonist, knitting and telling people to bugger off – incidentally, three of my favourite things.

Given that Brosgol is the author/illustrator of multi-award winning graphic novel Anya’s Ghost, I suspected that the illustrations here were going to be great. They were. Brosgol’s style features clean lines, blocks of colour and some fantastic facial expressions. Most of all, I just loved this book because it was so funny. The old woman is the matriarch of a home with an excessive amount of small children and so it’s unsurprising that she doesn’t get much alone time in which to knit. After tramping out of the village with naught but a shouted “Leave me alone!”, the old lady traipses off through a variety of unlikely environments until she can get some peace and quiet in which to work on her knitting.

My favourite part of the story is when the woman passes through a wormhole to avoid her latest pursuers. Honestly, the line “She swept the void until it was a nice matte black” has got to be one of the best in children’s literature.

This one is going to become a keeper for us. I am left with no option but to buy my own copy I liked this story so much.

I also requested Nightlights by Lorena Alvarez because it’s far cheaper to borrow all the graphic novels I want to read from the library than buying them.

Despite being in large picture book format, this is undoubtedly a graphic novel aimed at middle grade readers and older. The story revolves around Sandy, a young girl who loves to draw and has trouble focusing in class …or anywhere for that matter…due to the intense concentration she exerts while drawing. When Sandy meets Morfi, a new girl, their friendship at first seems to be buoying for Sandy, but as time progresses and Morfi appears in Sandy’s dreams, things aren’t quite as peachy for the pair as they appear. The author has slipped in a neat little solution to the problem that will require a bit of reasoning out on the part of younger readers, but is satisfyingly clever and opens the door for Sandy to throw off the shackles that are holding her back.

The colours in Sandy’s drawings are so eye-catching and lush that they’d look just as good stuck in a frame on your wall. The scenes set in Sandy’s dreamscapes are just creepy enough to indicate danger, yet are also filled with tiny details that call out to be pored over. I enjoyed this story a lot and I think its larger format will make it a great choice for primary (and secondary!) school libraries.

If you love delightful tales of friendship, cattiness and yarn then today is your lucky day! Allow us to happily present to you new release picture book Cat Knit by Jacob Grant, and provided to us by PanMacmillan Australia for review. Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

Cat and Yarn are the best of friends. They have so much fun playing together, the two are inseparable.

Until the day Girl takes Yarn away.

When Yarn Returns, he is completely changed, no longer Cat’s bright and rolly friend. Cat is mad!

Soon, Cat begins to miss his best friend, and he just might realize that a little change isn’t so bad after all.

It’s no secret that we are big fans of yarn and its related fibre-crafted products around the shelf, and when yarn is combined with a cute, grumpy-faced cat that looks a little like one of the cats in the dwelling, you can be sure that we will be big fans of the result. Here’s a little side by side pic for comparison about our prior claim:

Twinnies, or what?!

Cat, unsurprisingly, is friends with Yarn. They play together in all sorts of hilarious ways (read: sledding), they snuggle up together and are generally as happy as a cat and an inanimate object could be. When Girl takes yarn away and returns him completely changed however, Cat isn’t in love with the arrangement. What follows is a struggle between wanting things back the way they were and finding good use for yarn’s new form and function. But it isn’t all bad. After all, where there’s one ball of yarn, there might be more!

This book was a lot of fun and the mini-fleshlings particularly enjoyed the various moods of Cat, played out via his facial expressions. I particularly liked the machinations of Girl, which are known in the wider world as “knitting”, and was quite comforted by the fact that clearly Mad Martha isn’t the only one who pores over yarn catalogues with such undivided attention. The ending is a great laugh, featuring more in the way of catty expressions of displeasure, and a very nifty bobble hat indeed. The overall message of the book is that a change in the personality of one’s friend need not mean the end of a friendship, and that such changes can be just what is needed at that point in time.

The edition of the book that we received came with a dust jacket featuring the image above, and as we are incurable dust-jacket removers, we were able to uncover the delightful design on the hardback cover.

I will admit to having a yearning to own an ugly Christmas jumper, probably due to the fact that I will never have the opportunity to wear one unless I move to a shelf in the Northern Hemisphere for at least one Christmas, so this design tickled me pink.

I would recommend Cat Knit to anyone who (a) has a cat or (b) is able to laugh at cats, which, let’s admit it, is every human alive. Having received the thumbs up of approval from the mini-fleshlings in this dwelling, I can also say that it has passed the giggle road test for reading aloud to little ones. It’s even inspired me to ask Mad Martha to crochet me an ugly Christmas jumper of my own…which I will then attempt to force onto the cat (pictured above).

Yes, I know: knitting is more Mad Martha’s field of expertise, but when we noticed that knitting was combined with piracy in this book I stepped boldly into the fray. Today’s book, Ned the Knitting Pirate by Dianna Murray and Leslie Lammle was received gratefully from PanMacmillan Australia for review. Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

The crew of the pirate ship the Rusty Heap are a fearsome bunch! They’re tougher than gristle and barnacle grit. They heave and they ho and they swab and they . . . knit?

Well, one of them does, at least! Unfortunately for Ned, his knitting doesn’t go over well with the captain and crew. They urge him to hide his hobby and strive to be scurvier, like pirates should be. But when the briny ocean beast shows up to feast on the Rusty Heap and its crew, maybe Ned’s knitting is just the ticket to save the day!

If you’re looking for a pirate tale with a difference in a picture book market that is saturated with piratey titles, then look no further than Ned and his two pointy sticks. Ned is a delightful young pirate who is perfectly content to be who he is, despite the fact that his love of knitting seems to rub his shipmates up the wrong way. In every pirate situation – finding treasure, drinking rum, swabbing the deck, belching – Ned finds time to pick up the needles and get crafting. Even though his shipmates are keen to undervalue Ned’s hobby at every opportunity, even they can’t deny that Ned’s knitting might come in handy when traditional methods of frightening off sea monsters have failed.

The book is written in a bouncy, jaunty rhythm with rhyming text, so it’s perfect for reading aloud to your little landlubbers. There’s also a repeated refrain in the form of a pirate song that will allow adventurous readers to join in lustily with a harmless sea shanty. The illustrations are appropriately fluid, featuring a palette of mostly cool, ocean colours.

I did find it a bit strange that Ned’s knitting was shunned by the pirates when sailors of that vintage would have been experts with a thread and needle. Given that it was essential for sailors to be able to repair torn canvas sails and sew their own clothes and hammocks, it wouldn’t seem to be too far a stretch for some sailors to have a good knowledge of yarn-related crafts also.

But I suspect I’m overthinking things here.

Especially when you consider that it would be hard to knit when you’ve only got a hook for a hand.

Practicalities aside, this is a fun and quirky addition to the pirate kidlit subgenre with a subtly subversive message about being true to oneself even when those around you can’t see the value in your passions.

A hearty hello to you all! Today I’m breaking new ground and taking on the world of knitting (eep!) with My First Knitting Book Easy to Follow Instructions and More Than 15 Projects by Hildegarde Duezo and translated by Marina Orry. I requested the book from the publisher via Netgalley, working under the assumption that if I were to take up knitting using a book, working from a book aimed at children should be the best place to start. Surely the instructions therein would be far easier to follow than those in a book aimed at adults? Well, just wait and see! Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

If you want to learn to knit, you only need a ball of yarn, knitting needles, some patience — and this book! It’s the ideal introduction to knitting, with easy-to-follow, full-color instructions for more than fifteen projects. Clear, step-by-step explanations of basic techniques make this guide great for beginners of all ages, especially those wishing to create handmade gifts.

An introduction explains the how-to of knitting, from holding the needles and yarn to casting on, basic stitches, and finishing touches. Patterns start out as simple as can be and gradually become more challenging, although by no means difficult. Readers can advance from bracelets, hair ornaments, and pocketbooks to scarves and hats, in addition to a charming variety of household decorations.

Although the blurb mentions that “some patience” is needed, I would have to say, after having a crack at this book, that “infinite patience” is needed to get started when learning to knit from scratch. My early frustrations may have had something to do with the fact that I expected (completely reasonably, I might add) to master the basic stitches in about ten minutes and be moving on to completing the projects. Needless to say, this didn’t quite pan out as I had planned.

Beginning at the beginning (which, according to Julie Andrews, is a very good place to start) I followed the pictures and brief, step-by-step instructions and attempted to cast on. After about twenty minutes, countless re-starts, a temper boiling over and my brain repeating on loop “this would be so much easier if there were a HOOK on the end of these needles”, I managed to cast on about thirty stitches, thusly:

Being about ready to throw in the towel at this point, and covered in sweat from my brow, I summoned every ounce of fortitude I possess and pressed on to the basic knit stitch. I didn’t find this quite so difficult as casting on (although thoughts of “why on earth are these loonies using two straight sticks when they could have put a HOOK on the end?!” persisted), and eventually got up a bit of a rhythm. I did drop a few stitches here and there while attempting to slip the stitch off the end of the needles, but soldiered on because the book gave no indication of what to do in such a situation and I had no clue how to fix it. Having completed a row of knit stitch, I moved on to purl stitch, which didn’t seem quite so difficult after the trials of casting on and knit stitch, leaving me with this epic piece of needlework:

You can see from the unevenness of the rows that something has clearly gone a bit wrong here, and at this point I thought the book could have done with a “troubleshooting” section. As completing these three rows took me just over an hour, my interest in learning to knit diminished quickly, and I wondered how likely it would be for a young person to want to keep going at this point if they didn’t have a helpful, knit-knowledgeable adult around to assist and motivate.

The book provides instruction in a number of other stitches, as well as important things like increasing and decreasing, casting off and seaming pieces together. The instructions are accompanied by colour illustrations, but I couldn’t help thinking that actual photographs might have been more helpful, either as a replacement for the illustrations or used alongside them. I have found, when working crochet patterns from blog tutorials, that seeing actual photos of the work in progress is remarkably helpful.

The projects seem basic enough – there is a cute little coin purse, a keyring, some egg-cosies and keen-looking bracelets, amongst others – but again, if you are starting from scratch, gaining enough practice in the basics in order to start working on a project seems like a long path to walk.

I have put aside my desire to learn to knit for the moment after reading this book, given that I can achieve the same, or better, results more quickly with crochet and Tunisian crochet techniques in everything except for socks. If I were to pick this book up again to continue my brief knitting journey, I would make sure it was supported by a helpful, knowledgeable fleshling to assist with troubleshooting, or failing that, a whole slew of Youtube videos.

But enough about me – what about you? Have you ever tried to pick up a skill like this from a book? How did you fare?

It’s time to settle back with a fond-memory-inducing snack and enjoy today’s Double-Dip review that also features a side order of the Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas. We received both of today’s books from their respective publishers via Netgalley. Both are memoirs of sorts, one featuring multiple road-trips in pursuit of knitting utopia, the other featuring the wacky world of one Pakistani-Canadian Muslim film-maker. And on that appetising note, let’s get stuck in, shall we?

First up we have Laughing All the Way to the Mosque by Zarqa Nawaz. Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

Zarqa Nawaz has always straddled two cultures. She’s just as likely to be agonizing over which sparkly earrings will “pimp out” her hijab as to be flirting with the Walmart meat manager in a futile attempt to secure halal chicken the day before Eid. Little Mosque on the Prairie brought Zarqa’s own laugh-out-loud take on her everyday culture clash to viewers around the world. And now, in Laughing All the Way to the Mosque, she tells the sometimes absurd, sometimes challenging, always funny stories of being Zarqa in a western society. From explaining to the plumber why the toilet must be within sitting arm’s reach of the water tap (hint: it involves a watering can and a Muslim obsession with cleanliness “down there”) to urging the electrician to place an eye-height electrical socket for her father-in-law’s epilepsy-inducing light-up picture of the Kaaba, Zarqa paints a hilarious portrait of growing up in a household where, according to her father, the Quran says it’s okay to eat at McDonald’s-but only if you order the McFish.

Dip into it for…

…a two-parts funny, one-part serious and one-part bizarre foray into the unfamiliar (to me!) world of Islam in the context of a Pakistani-Bengali-Canadian family. I’m in two minds about this book because I assumed that, sitting, as I do, on the shelf of a pair of Catholics, there would be plenty of situations here that would feel like the familiar frustrations and giggle-worthy moments of those of us raised and immersed in institutionalised religion…but for most of the book I felt like I was reading something completely outside my experience. Apart from the many humorous situations described, including the “cleanliness” section described in the blurb – who knew about THAT?! Muslims, I suppose – and Nawaz nonchalantly taking on the role of hostess for over one hundred family, friends and neighbours for a major religious holiday, there are also some quite serious issues discussed as well – such as how the author’s family dealt with a neighbour reporting her father-in-law to the authorities soon after 9/11 for having a “suspicious” shipping container in his front yard.

Don’t dip if…

…you’re not prepared to embrace a story that flips from funny to unexpected to thought-provoking within a few pages. If you are not a Muslim, and don’t know much about Islam, don’t dip if you aren’t prepared to discover rituals, theological points of contention and aspects of daily life that you never suspected existed.

Overall Dip Factor

While I did enjoy this book, I will admit to feeling an ever-present sense of slight discomfort while reading – mainly because it was during reading this book that I realised that while I thought I knew lots of “stuff” about Islam, I actually know VERY little about it. I would certainly recommend this book as a fun, yet important, eye-opening reading experience about an ordinary family’s experience of their faith. If there’s one thing I would have liked to hear more about though, it would be the TV series developed by Nawaz – Little Mosque on the Prairie. How could this have gone for six seasons without me ever hearing about it? Bizarre.

Next, let us move on to Knitlandia: A Knitter Sees the World by Clara Parkes. Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

Knitting aficionado and notable artisan Clara Parkes delves into her storied travels with this inspiring and witty memoir on a creative life enriched by her adventures around the world.

Building on the success of The Yarn Whisperer, Parkes’s rich personal essays invite readers and devoted crafters on excursions to be savored, from a guide who quickly comes to feel like a trusted confidante. In Knitlandia, she takes readers along on 17 of her most memorable journeys across the globe over the last 15 years, with stories spanning from the fjords of Iceland to a cozy yarn shop in Paris’s 13th arrondissement.

Also known for her PBS television appearances and hugely popular line of small-batch handcrafted yarns, Parkes weaves her personal blend of wisdom and humor into this eloquently down-to-earth guide that is part personal travel narrative and part cultural history, touching the heart of what it means to live creatively. Join Parkes as she ventures to locales both foreign and familiar in chapters like:

Chasing a Legend in Taos
Glass, Grass, and the Power of Place: Tacoma, Washington
A Thing for Socks and a Very Big Plan: Portland, Oregon
Autumn on the Hudson: The New York Sheep & Wool Festival
Cashmere Dreams and British Breeds: A Last-Minute Visit to Edinburgh, Scotland

Fans of travel writing, as well as knitters, crocheters, designers, and fiber artists alike, will enjoy the masterful narrative in these intimate tales from a life well crafted. Whether you’ve committed to exploring your own wanderlust or are an armchair traveler curled up in your coziest slippers, Knitlandia is sure to inspire laughter, tears, and maybe some travel plans of your own.

Dip into it for…

…a fairly self-indulgent lark around various knitting hotspots aimed at those who are deeply embedded in the US and International “Knitting Scene”. The book is replete with vignettes of Parkes’ time in various places around the world, for reasons related to knitting conferences, teaching and general knitting-based travel.

Don’t dip if…

…you’re not a hardcore knitter. Or if you cringe at name-dropping. Or if you don’t want to read excessively wordy descriptions of various hotel foyers. Or if you don’t particularly care about “famous” people in the knitting scene and Parkes’ deep and abiding friendships with them.

Overall Dip Factor

I was really hoping that this was going to be the perfect contender for a Utopirama post. Knitting and travel – what else could one want in life? Well, plenty, if you don’t enjoy any of the factors I’ve just mentioned above. While there were plenty of chapter headings to draw me in here, I found the writing overall to be such that it seemed to specifically aim to alienate readers who are not knowledgeable about the movers and shakers in the knitting and design world. As a friend of a crocheter, I had very little knowledge, or indeed, interest, in Parkes’ name-dropping. The first story relates how Parkes came to know a particularly well-known (to everyone but me apparently) hand-spinner and dyer, which I would have found interesting if Parkes hadn’t insisted on ramming home HOW famous and HOW selective this lady was with her friendships. There was a section on a trip to Iceland that was reasonably interesting, but I suspect this is because Iceland is an interesting place, not because Parkes’ writing made it so. **On a side note, in this section, Parkes mentions two Australian co-travellers who she reckons say “Perth” like “Pith”. This nearly had me throwing my kindle at the wall. Australians would not say “Pith”. Ever. The vowel sound in “Perth” is a diphthong and therefore it would be ridiculous for anyone to use a short vowel in the word. I could have handled it if she said they pronounced it “Peer-th”, even though that would be closer to a Kiwi pronunciation, but not “Pith”. Being a linguist, I feel like I’ve got the knowledge to pull Parkes up on this one. And if you have been slightly irritated by my digression into minutesubject-specific analysis and assertions that I know more stuff than you about linguistics, then you’ve probably just developed a good sense of what I was feeling while reading this book.** Despite my early misgivings, I soldiered on and was unimpressed to discover that the name-dropping and self-indulgent “I’m more into the knitting scene than you” tone continued. Shame really. Approach with caution.

As I mentioned before, I am submitting both of these books for the Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge:

It’s our very first round-up of the year so I thought I’d go easy on you all and bring you one wordy book and two picture books. We received print copies of all these delightful reads from Allen & Unwin and Bloomsbury for review. Lassos at the ready? Let’s ride on in!

First up, from the master of linguistic gymnastics, David Astle, we have Wordburger: How to Be a Champion Puzzler in 20 Quick Bites.

Ten Second Synopsis:

A kid-friendly guide to becoming a wordsmith, covering everything from homophones to palindromes and pretty much everything in between.

Muster up the motivation because:

This book will give you at least some of the skills required to prove you’re the smartest attendee at your next dinner party, even if it is aimed at kids. The book is divided into sections, each dealing with a different peculiarity of the English language, for your learning pleasure. The sections also include some activities and mini-puzzles to get your brain working as you read. This is definitely not suited for reading aloud, and for the section on homophones, even reading it in your head to yourself comes with a severe risk of brain implosion. I would recommend this one as the type of book you dip into when the fancy takes you because I found that trying to read the sections consecutively nearly brought on word-related psychosis. On the plus side, when Letters and Numbers comes back to our screens (come on SBS!) I will now have some extra fact-based barbed prongs in my arsenal, instead of just an inflated sense of my own linguistic expertise.

At the age of just a few years, Joseph Merrick begins to develop strange growths on his body and face that will lead to his being known as the “Elephant Man”. Is there a way that people can look past his appearance and see Joseph for what he really is?

Muster up the motivation because:

This is a fascinating biography, sensitively told, that will pique the interests of the children that the book is aimed at, as well as the adults who read it to, and with, them. The illustrations are a combination of drawn artworks and collage, featuring actual photographs of some of the main characters, and some of Joseph’s possessions, including a handwritten letter and a cardboard model of a cathedral. Joseph’s life story is engaging and the tone of the text conveys the yearning that Joseph has to be treated like a human being. An informative afterword is included that will definitely generate conversation – I for one want to know if Joseph left his skeleton to science and how it came to be on display at the Royal London Hospital museum – and all up, this book feels like a quality piece of work for middle to upper primary school kids. I would have loved to have seen this work pushed out a little into a narrative nonfiction, middle grade chapter book offering as I think Joseph’s story could really pique the interest of independent readers in that age group (as well as adult readers of middle grade!). Highly recommended.

Brand it with:

Judging books by covers, facing up to diversity, forging friendships

And from the heartfelt to the zany, we have Stanley the Amazing Knitting Cat by Emily MacKenzie…

Ten Second Synopsis:

Stanley is a committed, generous individual who knits accessories for all his friends. But when he discovers the Woolly Wonders competition, his new creation may put a few noses (and tails) out of joint.

Muster up the motivation because:

It is well known that we here at the shelf are big fans of textile crafters and some of Stanley’s creations made us quite desirous to own such a piece (the bunny balaclavas particularly). This picture book is a riot of colour and zany antics and little ones will be drawn to the busy page spreads. We especially enjoyed one of the final pages in the book, the illustration on which required us to turn the book longways. We were quite surprised to discover that Stanley’s solution to a lack of yarn for his competition entry was to unravel all the lovely gifts he had made for his friends – we’re not sure we can forgive him for that – but his final product for the competition is a gasp-worthy sight and one that will have the youngsters cheering for our knitting hero. In fact, the tableful of knitted wonders had Mad Martha sneaking off to see when the textile competition specs for the Ekka and Pine Rivers Show go up – Stanley’s passion for creating epically yarn-tastic creations has rubbed off!

Welcome to another Utopirama, wherein we stroll in a calming, light breeze through the flowery fields of tomes that lift our spirits. Today I have a book that Mad Martha insisted we review, given that it relates to her chosen hobby of needlecraft. I am also submitting today’s book for the Non-Fiction Reading Challenge hosted by The Introverted Reader, in which I am participating, hence the comfy armchair. We were lucky enough to receive a digital copy of today’s book from the publisher via Netgalley, but we suggest if you’re wanting a copy of this one for yourself, it would be better in print, simply for the tactile nature of the subject matter.

The book is Knit the Sky: A Playful Way of Knitting by Lea Redmond. Here’s the blurb from Goodreads:

Look up from your knitting needles and explore the world around you! That’s the mantra of Lea Redmond, the creative instigator behind Knit the Sky. Challenging herself to capture the changing colors of the sky in her knitting, Redmond loaded up her yarn basket with shades of blue, gray, and white and set out to knit a strip reflecting each day’s shades. In 365 days, she imagines having a one-year weather report in the shape of a scarf. This is just one of 30 adventurous knitting challenges she shares with readers in this whimsical, inspiring collection. These are knitting projects like no other, as the goal is not just to have a finished project but to have a one-of-a-kind piece that tells a story about the knitter’s life experience. Accompanied by basic instructions for all the needed stitches, techniques, and patterns, Knit the Sky is a complete creativity starter kit for any knitter looking for a fresh approach to the craft.

Quick Overview:

The greatest thing about this book is that you can replace the word “Knit” in the title with any crafty word you please and you can still get an enormous amount from the book. For in Knit the Sky, it’s the process, not the finished product, which is the important thing. Mad Martha doesn’t know how to knit, but I had to listen to her enthuse over the exciting projects in this book and how she could convert them to crochet. There seemed to be only one or two projects in the book that really are specific to knitting – one in which friends cooperate to knit two scarves on one pair of needles springs to mind – but with a bit of creativity, crafty crafters could easily modify these projects to get around that. Even if you don’t do any crafty endeavour yourself, the book promotes a way of looking at and interacting with the world around you that inspires mindfulness and memory-making.

Another handy thing about the projects here is that the author has suggested numerous variations on each project to inspire you to have a go. For example, with the titular project – knitting a scarf comprised of individual stripes capturing the colour of the sky each day for a year – there’s the ingenious and touching suggestion of instead creating a baby blanket comprised of squares representing the colour of the sky on each day (or near enough to!) of the baby’s time in utero. We experienced a mild thrill of terror at the idea of the “Neighbourhood Cowl” in which the crafter is challenged to go visit all the neighbours on their block and then knit a stripe in the colour of each house, in street order. Then there’s the family projects, like the heirloom idea of beginning a pattern or simple project, and then leaving it safely encased somewhere for future generations to find and complete, and the almost unbearably cutesy idea of the grandparent creating a basket-coloured (or basket-stitched!) woolly hat for themselves, and a berry-coloured woolly hat for each of their grand-offspring!

In all honesty, this book made Mad Martha’s heart sing for the potential it has to promote connection amongst people – family, neighbours, complete strangers – and the flow-on effect of crafting as a means to achieve Utopia.